Chapter 2 of 10All chapters
Chapter 2 of 10
Conformity
Going along with the group.
Asch
Asked to judge obviously unequal line lengths, participants agreed with a unanimous wrong majority in a substantial share of trials, knowing it was wrong.
- A single ally who dissents collapses the effect.
- People conform both to be right and to be accepted; the two motives differ.
In practice
Meetings where the first speaker anchors everyone are the everyday version. Collecting views independently beforehand is the standard antidote.